Something about her steady tone unsettled him. Perhaps it was confidence. Perhaps it was the absence of fear.
“Step out of the vehicle,” Mercer ordered.
Across the street, a college student named Ethan Ruiz paused while pumping gas, noticing the sudden escalation. He instinctively pulled out his phone, not expecting history — only curiosity.
Maggie stepped out slowly. “I am cooperating,” she said clearly.
Without warning, Mercer grabbed her wrist and spun her toward the car. The motion was abrupt, unnecessary. Ethan’s phone camera captured her stumbling slightly as metal cuffs snapped around her wrists.
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